Moon in Shadow
by LadyGranuaille
Summary: Follow a were wolf as she encounters danger, love and sacrafice. Family feuds and deals with demons collide as Strema, Ebyn and Durzas find danger and intrigue. I'll continue adventures if people want me to.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, first things first…

DISCLAIMERS: So, apparently my plot borrows from the Lion King, Ghostrider and Romeo and Juliet. But, the characters, all mine! So there! Also, I do not own Dungeons and Dragons. Otherwise, LARPing would be required. Always. Especially when hot men were involved. Ahem. Anyways… Which means I do not own any of the classes, spells, races, et cetera mentioned in the following text. Leave a response if you want me to publish further adventures, otherwise, enjoy!

_As a pup, she'd known she was different from the rest of the pack. Felt a heightened sense of awareness. Then one day, while pursuing a hare solo, she was cornered by a huntsman. He'd drawn the arrow across the bowstrings and let it fly. But it had only glanced into her shoulder. In that moment of agonizing pain, her true heritage revealed itself. The man had stared horrified at a nude little girl, bleeding where the arrow had hit. She blanked, and had not seen her family since. _

_The huntsman had taken her in, knowing her for what she was-a werewolf, a half-breed. He'd raised her the only way he knew how-as a Druid, worshipping the spirits and powers of the earth. But in her adolescence, she had become too dangerous. The free spirit of her kind raged full force in her passions of anger. The hermit druid had begun to fear for his own life. Not knowing what else to do, he'd reported his crime to King Billog's high court. Keeping a werewolf was punishable by death to the creature and banishment of the keeper, but what other options had he had?_

_Strangely, the King had not banished him, only sworn him to secrecy on the matter. And the she-wolf?-kept by his majesty. This was not the first time Billog had felt himself above his own laws, however, and the people became unhappy. As all kings, he had fathered illegitimate children, but his own wife was barren. It was not long before one of his bastard sons came and questioned their own right to the thrown. Billog hid in his castle, building a massive dungeon maze to keep anyone and everyone away. So, Morvin, the usurper son, called in a legendary crew of adventurers to oust the King. The group was led by Ebyn, a mysterious outsider. All told, the assembly was made up of a cleric, a sorceress and a fighter, in addition to their fearless leader. But they had all abandoned his quest, because of her-the she-wolf that had only brought mischief to them. Strema had been locked away in the dungeon, as a last resort of defense by the rightly paranoid king. But she was too weak and eager for a chance of escape to be dangerous to, much less fight, Ebyn and his band. As fate would have it, the dark warrior took pity on the weakened she-wolf. In the dungeons, the star-crossed lovers felt as though destiny alone had set Strema to be found by Ebyn. But it was a much darker purpose that led him to her, far more evil than either of them could have imagined…_

Strema woke in the cool night air to the howling. Quietly, she rose from the hard ground. As soon as she was outside, she regretted it. The air was cold, and the beginnings of a harsh storm whipped a wind about her feet. But she knew she had to do this. This pact was something she'd started-and was now something she had to finish. Shouldering her quiver and bow, she sensed him behind her. Not the one whose arm had been around her all through the night, no, he would lay still even though he knew she stalked to her death. Ebyn had never been too big on letting his emotional walls down. Instead, it was her only loyal companion that stalked out of the shadows on all fours. The soft brilliance of his white coat lit up the otherwise starless night.

"Didn't think I'd let you go do this alone, did you?"

She smiled to him. In response, his sharp wolf's teeth glinted back in the night. She'd never been able to lose her pack brother, not then, not now. Not ever.

"Thought I'd try and shake you from my trail one last time."

She smiled back. It was amazing, to be truly happy again. Perhaps it was because for the first time in months, she was doing something on her own. Not skirting in Ebyn's wake. Her half-demon lover might be cursed by his own existence-yes, he was a half-demon. Born of a far more tumultuous love affair then their own, he was more rejected from society than she. But he took it in stride, used it to his vantage. Unfortunately, that left everyone else in the dark.

"Not anymore. For once I'll have a battle that's all my own making and breaking",

she thought

For weeks, she had had nightmares guiding her to this place-the woods of her fathers. Something had drawn her here, like the hare that had led her to the huntsmen. Once in amongst the trees of her childhood, she had smelt a familiar scent of foreboding and fear. And, now looking at her brother, she knew he had sensed it too. That was why they were here, tonight. Surely Elhonna guided their destinies. The thought put a gravity of thrill through her spine.

Then again, maybe the shivers of excitement were just because she knew how unlikely it was that'd she'd come out of this alive. With this numbing thought, she morphed into hybrid mode.

"Let's go"

Durzas's tail wagged and he held back a yip as together, they bounded down the trail. Both their senses collided with what they hunted. Even with the only a pack of two, the frenzy of the hunt filled them with hunger for the death that was yet to come. Strema had not hunted with another werewolf for over a decade, but it seemed like only yesterday she and her brother had been chasing each other after an elk. Unfortunately, their prey tonight was something much more menacing than a meal.


	2. Chapter 2

Ebyn lay awake in the pile of furs, just as he'd done every night for years now. Well, maybe not the furs, but the not sleeping. He didn't need to sleep. Or drink, or eat. Sometimes he did these things out of the habit learned from his adopted family, or to keep up some form of disguise to those he didn't want to have know of his true existence. Being half demon meant he didn't require nourishment of any kind. Just battle.

The fierce drive for victory. He hadn't felt that these past few weeks. But that was her fault.

She'd begged him to come out here. 'Just a little hunt around in the woods', she'd pleaded. But she'd come back from one of her 'little hunts' hours ago, fallen asleep, and now this. It was the third night in a row that she'd slipped out of his bed and into the night without letting him in on why. He knew it wasn't in the wolf's nature to hunt more than once in a single night. This was the woman. She was searching for something. And he'd begun to feel another presence. Not the unintelligible game that ran in scores through these woods. But something as human as himself, well, perhaps more. It was difficult to access. Nonetheless, something had been searching for her, too, and had found her. Ebyn had smelt it, with his Hell-borne senses, he'd practically tasted the he-wolf that spoke in guttural canine to his love.

He wanted so very badly to get up and breakup whatever midnight meeting of old lovers might be happening, but at the same time wanted so bad to trust her. She was the one part of his life that wasn't bad, wasn't evil. Shattering that vision of purity would destroy him.

Then he heard her respond in low growls of joy. That's it, he thought to himself, throwing the furs from himself and standing. But by the time he got to the outside of the small cave, they were gone.

Standing in the bitter cold alone, with her scent still lingering, he wanted to weep. But this was impossible. The devil in him was not capable of having tear ducts. So the loneliness stayed pitted in his stomach. He knew he should go after her, be her champion, fight for her. But Strema had never been the kind of girl you fight for. She just came and made everything heaven. And Hell.

All of the sudden, a shrouded figure materialized out of the darkness.

"Ebyn-you know you can't let her go."

"Why? It's just some little jaunt with a pup from the past. What does that have to do with you?"

The half-demon's Shade stood irresolute in the dark. Most of the time, the being left him alone, but when Ebyn's destiny was in danger, the annoying and invisible one was sure to show.

"It's not what you think it is. She loves him, yes, but not like that"

"How else does she love? I've felt it, its like fire and ice, and leaves me in limbo, begging for salvation. That's about the time you show up to mock me"

The shade stood solid, yet translucent. Ebyn always became ridiculously bard-like in his emotional bouts. But it stayed there all the same. It s existence was staked on this half-spawn. Normally, he wouldn't care what any being did with its free time, but that was before Ebyn had decided to sell his soul. He sold it in exchange for the strength to protect those he loved from Death. Now the shade filled in for the man's soul so that the demon-half might have something to leech off of. The flesh was not enough. It needed emotion, rationale. It was a sad existence, even for a shade, but entertaining nonetheless. The half-breed herself provided the bulk of said entertainment. Ebyn did not know where Strema had come from, but the shade did. She was the deal-breaker, as they were called on the Hell-planes. Deal-breakers were beings whose existences were altered by devils to ruin deals in the favor of evil. The trick of the contract between the half-spawn and the devil was that Ebyn had to fight for those he loved-he'd always win, but he'd suffer the scars of the battle. If he didn't try to save those he loved, the jig was up, and the flesh would join the soul in eternal torture. And the shade couldn't have that. It too needed a host, a willing host. Besides, the kicks the little minx herself provided weren't half bad. He'd hate to see her go, even in a battle of old blood feuds and fur.

The shade had learned of the tale of King Billog and the huntsmen a few months ago. Some sub terrestrial spawn were just too easy to get information out of. The very devil that had made the deal with Ebyn had calculated the man's downfall while the blood was still wet on the contract. The evil-being had known then that the man had set his sights on capturing the castle from King Billog. Pulling some strings in the ruler's mind to keep the werewolf was no great task. Arranging that she be in the right mood when Ebyn stumbled upon her kennel was an entirely different matter. It was an issue that the Devil had taken extra special cares with. The evil creature knew that this first meeting of his pawn with Ebyn would have to be an exposition of all that the Devil itself was unaccustomed to-love, purity, kindness. But it had worked, almost too perfectly. But the silly little bitch was a perfect damsel in distress, and the lonely half-demon so hungry for a close bond with someone else. And they were both so cast out of the rest of society, it was a perfect match made in Hell.

Ebyn stood glaring at his shade, malice and pain in his eyes. He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to love Strema anymore. Maybe letting her go with someone else was for the best. One less life to save, right?

The shade sensed the path of his host's thoughts, and knew it was self-deception. Without a true soul, a man quickly became heartless as well.

"She goes to her death with a brother from the pack of her fathers"


	3. Chapter 3

Now he had the broken-man's attention. The foolish half-demon had never bothered learning about the past of the woman he called 'love'. Then again, this wasn't entirely his fault; a druid is full of many secrets, her childhood probably the best kept of them.

And the shade had watched it all from the psyche of Ebyn, and the Hell plane, anticipating his own demise in the process.

Since Strema had come into the picture, she'd given them all a run for their money at every turn. Soon after King Billog was removed from his throne, and Strema freed from her prison in his dungeons, she developed an unquenchable lust for danger; something caused by the Devil's influence. Ebyn was constantly saving her from certain death. It had gotten so bad that the rest of their party had left Ebyn, sought a new leader. Then, for awhile, she'd backed off living on the edge. The devil had been busy with other affairs. In her true nature, Strema was a typical she-wolf. All she wanted was to settle down, raise pups and have a good hunt every full moon. But the devil inspired her to danger.

It would all end tonight. The misused pawn would finally be put down. And all because the man she loved had given up on her.

Or at least that was the Devil's plan. It had inspired the fears of jealousy in Ebyn's mind and carried Strema's scent to her brother, Durzas.

The shade knew it could never possibly explain all of this to Ebyn in words of conversation, so instead it entered the half-spawn's flesh to fill it with the truth. It was painful, this melding of being. But it was the only way to make the man comprehend. The shade felt the man's lifting of spirits at learning that she was not in love with another, but quickly, his body began to quail under the strain. Ebyn was near the threshold of pain, but the shade had to convey the situation that Strema was in, too. There wasn't enough time to explain.

_Before she'd been tamed by the druid in the woods, she had experienced the full trial of sibling rivalry. As the alpha, her father was always facing down competitors. Usually, it was nothing serious. That was until her uncle, Makara, had shown up at the den. By lineage, he was half-wolf. But in spirit, he was all jackal. From the protection of her mother's embrace, she watched the battle. At first, her father had had the upper paw. But then, Makara had growled something strange, and suddenly her father faltered. A break in his step was all the pause that Makara needed. He made the death bite, the blood of the dead alpha stained the ground. Strema had felt her mother shudder in pain, and both backed away into the shadows. Surely they were next. A new alpha never kept the old female, much less her cubs around. He smelt their fear and began to stalk them. When he was but a tail's length away, her brothers leapt from the darkness. She had placed her paws over her eyes then, unable to watch any more blood shed. When it was quiet, her brothers stood panting. But Makara was gone. _

_Since then, the pack had returned to normal. But Makara had now gathered a following, to claim the hunting territory that he had rightly earned by killing the alpha. _

_Durzas, who had taken over as alpha after his and Strema's father had died, had howled to her every night since she'd entered her family's territory. For the first time in nearly 10 years, she'd seen him again. Now they were pursuing the scent of their half-uncle and his pack, to end the feud once and for all. _

The shade separated from the man, and Ebyn fell to the earth on his knees. He clutched his stomach to keep from heaving. Every time that happened, he thought he was going to die. He recovered, and stood. After taking a deep breath, he asked,

"Are you coming with me, then?"

The Shade smiled to its own darkness. Much better.

"What choice do I have, half-spawn? I must go in this plane wherever you go"

Ebyn nodded, and shouldered a set of solid steel chains. He then set-off at a break neck run, after the woman he loved.


	4. Chapter 4

Strema and Durzas paced along a river. Noses lowered, they sniffed in agitation along the water. Overhead, the storm raged on. The wind that had only rustled the leaves now made the trees sway in its torment.

"I can't believe we lost the scent. Especially one as foul as those mutts reek."

"Don't worry Strema, it has nothing to do with your competency as a hunter. They're using some kind of magic. There's no way they could have crossed this without it. Or made their trail disappear so well. Makara's found some bad friends in high places."

She growled in frustration. To be so close to the battle and lose the scent? What kind of wolf was she?

A dark voice in her head answered, renewing her rage,

"A city wolf. A domesticated puppy, tamed by the soft touch of a man's hand. Come on, any real hunter would've noticed there's a tie-off for a skiff of some kind over there."

She looked up, and there was! It was attached by a small stake in the ground with a mossy old length of rope, floating in the rough water.

"They didn't follow the edge along-they crossed here!"

"How can you tell?"

She motioned to the find. Durzas nodded his head to confirm his agreement. But his furry eyebrows soon conveyed a new concern.

"How are we supposed to follow?"

_The devil that guided their hunt hoped his next action was none too cliché or obvious…_

A slow creaking was followed by a loud crash, as an old oak blew over in the wind. Conveniently, its length and breadth afforded a perfect bridge across. Not hesitating a moment for safety, Strema hopped atop and skirted to the other side.

Durzas followed, and an odd suspicion began to fill his mind. Once over, he barked a half command in old hunter's code.

Immediately, Strema halted and turned to face him.

"What? We have to hurry, why do you want to stop?"

Normally, Durzas was a highly logical wolf. Racing off in a stormy night with only one hunting companion after a whole pack of dangerous enemies would not be something he'd sign up for. But until now, his mind had been too clouded with rage to afford him the clarity to see this. While the devil had felled the tree, the wolf's mind had been let go, like Strema's. Unlike her, however, it had not been retaken into control. A wall of black water suddenly raged down the river behind them, washing the tree-bridge away and downstream. Now no one would be able to tell that _they_ had crossed here, nor would the siblings be able to get back. This only confirmed Durzas's new suspicion. Something else was at work here.

"Strema, don't you find it a little strange that you should want to come here to hunt at the exact same time our uncle is returning to reclaim the territory?"

She cocked her head in confusion. Coincidences happened, yes, so what was his point? Besides, he had admitted to having similar dreams as her. Why was their fate not clear to him?

"Or how we try to find one another for how many nights in a row by howl-location, but fail every night until the very one that Makara is passing within a scent's distance of us?"

She had to agree-howl location rarely took more than a few hours to find the other pack member, much less several nights. But it had been years since she'd used it.

"Okay, fine, how about that tree back there, how it conveniently fell in just the right way, and disappeared right after we crossed it?"

"It didn't 'disappear', Durzas. It was washed away…By a random wave of black water, okay, maybe I see what you're getting at."

She sat down now, ears lowed in concentration. Something was up, but what? Then an idea came to her-it was not entirely from her own mind, but she didn't know that.

"It's our father, Durzas! His spirit, he's come back to aide us in our vengeance! That's it!"

Logic still being his greatest ally, Durzas somehow doubted this. It was appealing to the spirit and heart, but not the mind. And another thing bugged him,

"Strema, dad knew just as well as we do the laws of the pack. Why would he encourage us to work against those? By right, Makara should be alpha, not me. Besides, there's not a very good chance we'll survive, do you really think our own father would guide us on to such a dangerous fight?"

"Don't you see, Durzas? If it's him, which I know it is, we can't lose!"

A strange look had come into her eyes, a crazed look. Durzas had seen it before, but that dog had had a sickness. Strema smelt perfectly healthy. She just wasn't acting it.

"I can't do this, Strema. It's suicide. And we should've let Makara have the territory years ago, as is seen fit by the law. All former members of the pack are allowed pardon if they leave, we were no different."

"Makara had murder in his eyes, and you know it. That's why you and the others attacked him-to protect me and Mom!"

She screamed this; partly out of anger and partly to be heard over the wind.

"No, Strema. We attacked him because we were angry, and didn't want to lose our home. We couldn't possibly know what his intent was"

They stood silent for a moment, the rain began to pelt down and thunder softly rumbled in the distance. The storm was coming to an end.

"Come on, Strema. Let's go back to where your lover lays. He's probably worried sick about you, especially with tonight's weather."

Her first reaction was shock; how had he known about Ebyn? But then, of course. She was probably covered in his scent, to the nose of another wolf. She snorted in disagreement to his comment on Ebyn being 'concerned'.

"As cold as he is, I doubt he's noticed I'm even gone. What do I really have to go back to?"

So, thought Durzas, that's what this is all about. He sighed inwardly; he'd begun to be very concerned about what was going on inside her head. But if it was only a cry for help over a low burning love; that was something he could deal with.

He morphed into his human form and sat down on an old stump. He motioned for her to do the same.

Strema stayed standing; locked there. She very much wanted to just collapse and confess all the confusion of her heart to her brother, but something stopped her. Something made all the terrifying images of her childhood flash through her mind, culminating in a red rage.

Durzas saw her snarl, and then change into full wolf mode. Then she growled,

"I'm going to finish this, whether you're coming or not"

And then she bounded off, crashing through tree limbs and undergrowth. He barely had enough time to stand before she disappeared out of sight.

"Strema! Come back! This is madness!"


	5. Chapter 5

Less than a kilometer away, Ebyn heard the stranger's voice call her name. The man continued to call for her, hoping she'd come back. Ebyn only shook his head in understanding as he approached where the voice came from.

Durzas was ready to give up; his voice was hoarse, and the wind had picked up again. Suddenly, he sensed someone near.

"Strema? Is that you?"

"Try again, fur ball"

Ebyn watched as a young blond man changed into an ice white wolf.

"You must be her brother"

Durzas assumed hybrid mode, knowing his disguise was ruined.

"And who are you?"

"Can't you smell her on me?"

Durzas raised his nose slightly; yes, Strema's scent was all over him. But another smell, unfamiliar to the wolf that had never had any contact with true evil, was persistent with the man.

"You must be the loveless lover, then. What are you?"

Ebyn stiffened at being identified as something other than a human. Magical objects hid most of his more unique adaptations from other beings. But those with heightened smell were usually not fooled by these tricks. Strema never had been. He decided that changing the subject was the best thing to do, especially considering explaining his situation would take far too long. And also lessen his chances of gaining Durzas as an ally.

"Which direction did she head off in?"

Durzas briefly considered lying to the man, then going off on his own to bring her back, but discarded this idea. Maybe this guy had something up his sleeve.

He motioned towards where she'd run off.

"I'll have to track her at this point. Can you keep up?"

"You just follow that trail as fast as you can, don't worry about me"

Durzas nodded, than dashed off just as Strema had done. Ebyn followed easily. His dark vision and high speed made pursuing the white wolf easy. It was finding Strema herself that would've posed a challenge. The demon half of him was not particularly adapted to hunting, just killing.


	6. Chapter 6

Strema had now changed back into hybrid form. This gave her the advantages of both the wolf and the human. Makara's pack was enjoying a handsome elk within the shelter of a steep ravine. From three different angles now, she'd recounted their numbers and re-accessed the situation. There were still eight of them, and only one of her. And there was absolutely no way to execute a proper ambush. One thing was in her advantage, however. Their scouts were terrible. She'd already put one down, without a yelp from the young pup. Almost a shame, he had been a good looking wolf. The other three had yet to even notice one of their numbers was missing. She crouched down, under an outcropping of boulders, to wait out until they all fell asleep. This was a typical behavior after a gorge feeding. But she still hadn't seen Makara himself, perhaps he was already asleep.

Suddenly, she felt a set of teeth clamp down on the ruff of her neck. To ease the pain, she shifted into full wolf mode. But the teeth still dug into her flesh.

"Hello, niece. Come to join the party?"

"Makara!"

She growled. He released her neck from his mouth, but put a front paw on her neck. This held her to the ground with the weight of his body.

"Trust me, sweetie, with the boys I've got down there, I'm the least of your problems right now. Been awhile since any of them have seen a she-wolf that I'd let 'em have a go at. But seeing as we're family, just wouldn't be proper for me to take you into the protection of my harem"

He chuckled, a coughing bark. Then, he howled the scouts over. Out of the shadows, a dusty red wolf appeared, then a black one, finally, a scrawny flea-bitten mutt. Strema decided the last one wasn't even full wolf, like her uncle.

"Didn't think I'd let these idiots patrol without a proper leader, like myself, would ya? A lot of good it did, though."

He turned to the red one,

"Saraz! Where is Chowl?"

The red wolf, seemingly Saraz, swallowed nervously.

"He-he's dead, sir. We don't know how"

"Well, I do. Ya'll remember little bitty Strema, don't ya?"

The three scouts looked down at the grey she-wolf at their leader's paw. Strema saw the big black wolf lick his jaws, and shivered in disgust.

"That's right, Brile, my brother's sweet little girl has decided to pay her uncle his respects after all this years. Why don't you boys escort her to the den?"

They nearly purred with pleasure at the thought.

"Oh, and Mackey?"

The scrawny dog perked its ears,

"Why don't you have the first go? Ease her into how things work around here"

Mackey yipped, wagging his tail ferociously. Strema visually shrunk. She wanted to whimper for mercy, howl for aide. But her pride prevented it.


	7. Chapter 7

Durzas and Ebyn had been pursuing the trail for only ten minutes, when Durzas suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. Ebyn nearly ran over the wolf, but was able to stop himself.

Ebyn didn't understand why they'd stopped here, but knew better than to ask. A hunter delighted in explaining his tactics to anyone who would listen,

"They caught her here"

Ebyn didn't need to ask who 'they' were; the shade had already filled him in on all the details of the family feud.

Durzas picked up a tuft of grey fur from the ground. Part of it was stained with blood. He already knew who's it was, but brought it to his nose to verify. Ebyn swallowed uncomfortably; since he'd made the deal, he'd never lost anyone he loved. Pain gripped his heart and he nearly crumbled in defeat. But the Shade knew better. Being denied his own corporeal form allowed him to drift around unnoticed-even among the enemy. He still had to remain within a certain distance of Ebyn, though.

"Relax, half-spawn. She's still alive."

Ebyn started to reply, but the Shade quieted him,

"The werewolf will hear you, but it can't see or hear me. In short, he'll think you're nuts and go in after the damsel alone. And we both know that won't end pretty."

Ebyn nodded his understanding, darting a look at Durzas to see if the wolf had noticed. But he had his nose to the ground, trying to find the right trail. The Shade continued,

"There is only one accessible entrance to the mound where your lassie is being kept. This is the one guarded by Makara's pack. However, a much older and more dilapidated entrance is unguarded by any wolf. You will find it on the south end of the mound."

Ebyn had questions, and was willing to risk being accused of insanity to get the answers. Besides, Durzas had wandered out of earshot.

"Why doesn't Makara use the south entrance?"

"Because this is a barrow mound. The entrance I suggest you use was used as a place for sacrificial offering for centuries. Although the people that killed a child there every equinox were obliterated long ago, the stains of the innocent blood remain. Some might say all that blood and death might…_manifest_ itself into something worth avoiding."

Ebyn nodded his understanding. His limited access to the knowledge of darker things made what the Shade suggested quite logical. Usually it required a very violent death and the chanting of a mage for a spirit to manifest into a haunting; but repeated sacrifices might do it too.

"It's nothing I can't handle"

The Shade smiled. The man's near invincibility made him arrogant, but he was right. This manifestation was a mere sprite in comparison with the demons that Ebyn had faced before.

"Who were you just talking to?"

Ebyn nearly jumped out of his skin when Durzas was heard before seen.

"No one"

"Oh, so you often talk to yourself?"

"When I'm devising a plan, yes"

"So what's your big plan mysterious one?"

Ebyn was used to simply beheading anyone who suspected his true nature, much less mocked it, but the Shade held him back, whispering,

"You need him! Besides, I don't think Strema would take you're killing her brother too lightly. Just point out the south entrance"

The half-demon released his temper in a quick mental exercise. Then, motioned for the wolf to follow. He was about to set off when he suddenly remembered something.

"What did you do with the tuft of fur?"

"I put it back, what difference does it make?"

"Could make all the difference in the world. When you change forms, into to human, you are unclothed, right?"

Durzas shifted his weight uncomfortably. It was one of the reasons he rarely morphed. Hybrid was okay, at least there was the fur to provide some form of covering. But full human was full Monty. He nodded to confirm.

Ebyn continued,

"Strema found a way around that. I don't know how, but she's got some kind of enchantment. When she changes into a wolf, everything on her; clothing, bow, quiver, arrows, it all changes with her. That tuft of fur could be half a dozen arrows, for all we know."

Durzas looked amazed for a moment, perhaps even a little jealous. Then he smirked.

"What's so funny about this to you?"

"What if it's like, her chemise or something? That would be hilarious!"

He looked up at the glaring Ebyn, and then quickly stopped laughing. Apparently embarrassing his sister is not what this guy had in mind.

"Well, I don't have any pockets, like you said, no clothes, so…"

"Give it to me"

Ebyn placed the tuft deep inside one of the pockets of his cloak, but not before letting the softness play across his palm. The shade appeared,

"Are we done having this little bonding session? There's a damsel in quite a bit of distress still!"

Ebyn quickly turned to Durzas and explained what the shade had told him earlier,

"There's another entrance into the cave, that's not being guarded."


	8. Chapter 8

Durzas nodded, and the pair set off at a fast walk. They walked 50 paces in a semi-circle. Ebyn pointed out the hole grown over with thorny weeds. He'd have never noticed it if the Shade hadn't appeared, for his eyes alone, beside it just now. The ground before it was devoid of any life because it was neatly paved with smooth black stones.

Durzas looked around suspiciously. He lifted his nose to the air, but couldn't find a scent of anything. Not even a weasel had come near this place in days, perhaps longer. This only made him more apprehensive.

"Why do you suppose Makara isn't guarding this entrance?"

Ebyn shrugged. Explaining the real reason would be impossible without creating more doubt. So, he made something logical up,

"It's not even really an entrance, with all that overgrowth. Would a wolf really expect an attack from this end?"

Durzas couldn't disagree with that. Besides, by the looks of it, Makara probably would have found it rather difficult to find anyone willing to guard it. What wolf would patrol that alone? The place looked downright spooky. He thought of asking Ebyn how he had known about it, but decided it would have to wait till later.

"Fine, let's go in."

Durzas set off at a slow jog. The first half of the distance was all down hill, into a ravine of sorts. After the ground leveled out, he went into a fast run. He covered the ground to the black stones in less than a few strides. He turned back to face Ebyn and brag over his good speed, but found the man gone. Fearing deceit, he prepared to make a dash back into the woods.

"Where you going, fur ball? I've been waiting for you to get here, and when you finally do, you turn tail?"

The werewolf turned to face Ebyn in disbelief. The man stood there, leaning casually against the outside of the cave. Not even out of breath.

"How did you-? I mean, I'm a-Never mind"

Ebyn smiled at Durzas's confusion. But the Shade shook its head in disapproval.

"Are you trying to blow your cover? Besides, you need to conserve your strength and magics for when the cave's guardian shows itself."

The half-demon just rolled his eyes at the shade's concern. A manifestation spirit was no big baddie to worry about. The Shade knew the man's thoughts, and decided to remind him of the she-wolf's situation,

"A second too late is all it takes for her to die, you know"

Ebyn glared at the shrouded being, but knew what it said was truth.

"Come on, fur ball. Or are you afraid of the dark?"

The werewolf growled in answer and prowled fearlessly into the dark hole. But inside, he was quaking in dread. Something unnamed rested here, his senses told him that much. Behind him, Ebyn sighed at the sight of the thorned bushes. The wolf was able to crawl conveniently under them, even in hybrid form. They were easily enough taken care of, however. He waved his hand past them, and whispered an enchantment under his breath. They withered and turned to dust. He then looked around behind him, to make sure no one followed, and then ducked into the tunnel after the white wolf.


	9. Chapter 9

Inside the dusky mound, Strema had thus far managed to avoid violation. But only because Mackey was at the bottom of the pecking order. Saraz and Brile sat at the only exit from the small cavern that Strema was being kept in. They chuckled to one another at their small compatriot's attempts to mount the much larger she-wolf. Strema was getting tired, though. She'd come to the conclusion that this Mackey was indeed only part wolf, the rest was undoubtedly coyote. She knew she could kill the idiotic dog, but knew better. Once he was dead, his claim to mate her first was null. Then, Brile and Saraz were free to take her. And she wouldn't be able to stop them. For the tenth time now, she reached around to pull Mackey off of her back and then threw him across the cavern. He slid across the earthen floor into the opposite wall. Whimpering and panting to his companions, he reminded them of something Strema hadn't thought of,

"You guys do know the sooner I'm done, the sooner you get your turns, right?"

Brile and Saraz weren't the sharpest teeth in the bite, however,

"What are you meaning, runt?"

Strema swallowed nervously, and backed up against the wall. She didn't want to reveal her heritage to these guys. Human form would discourage them from doing what Mackey proposed, but she was also weaker that way. They might just kill her and be done with it.

"I mean, if you guys would just hold her down for a second, I could get this over with and then…"

"We'd have our chance. Yeah, I see what you're getting at. What do you think, Saraz? Should we help the little pipsqueak?"

The red wolf grinned in agreement. Strema prepared to change as all three approached her. Maybe in their confusion she would have a chance to dash out. Just as Brile opened his mouth to clamp down on her shoulder, Strema changed into a human. All three of her captors stepped back in alarm. In that split second of puzzlement, she shot out the exit and down the passage. Knowing it was only a breath's moment before they would be pursuing her, she reached for her bow, but it was gone.

"Damn, must have lost it somewhere in wolf form!"

Instead, she grabbed an arrow from the quiver and held it aloft like a dagger. She heard their panting and paws on the ground but could not see them. In hybrid form, she would be able to better sense them, but risked them reverting back to their prior mindset. Crouching lower to the ground and swallowing nervously, she prepared herself to fight to the death.

"Brile, take the left, Mackey, you're in the middle. We'll back her into a corner then go in for the kill"

Even though she was not even in hybrid form, Strema could still comprehend canine. She continued to back down the passage, facing her executioners. Suddenly, she heard muffled noises from behind her. And then a familiar voice yelled,

"Strema, come this way, quick!"


	10. Chapter 10

She smiled as relief filled her mind,

"Durzas! I knew you weren't going to let me have all the fun"

"Well, of course not. But neither was he"

Strema gasped in surprise as she smelt her lover's presence in the gloom.

"Ebyn-you came."

"Of course I did. I always will, isn't that the rule?"

She swallowed nervously as she realized what he was saying. He still loved her. For the past few days, she hadn't been sure, given his more than characteristic distance. But she was quickly brought out of her reverie as the three mongrels argued amongst one another in canine as to what to do next,

"I'm telling you, there're three of them"

"So what? There're three of us, too!"

"Um, you guys, I realize that both of you are perfectly capable of taking out a human, but me? I'm a little lacking in the, um, what's the right word…"

"General usefulness? Yeah, we got that"

"Mutt's got a point; maybe we should go get Makara"

"No way! He'll kill us for losing the prisoner"

Durzas heard and comprehended this too. A thought came to him, and he changed into full wolf to better communicate with them.

"Hey, in case you haven't noticed, you're dead anyways. I suggest you go get Makara I'd like to speak with him"

Brile came up to Durzas. In the darkness, the white wolf shimmered.

"And what makes the likes of you think you are worthy of speaking to the alpha Makara?"

"Because I too am an alpha, the alpha of this territory"

Strema smiled as she visualized the shocked expression on the black wolf's face. In the darkness, she had found Ebyn's arms. He suddenly remembered the piece of fur in his pocket,

"I believe this is yours"

As she touched the tuft, it quickly changed into her faithful bow.

"Thank you. I was afraid I'd lost it."

Ebyn wanted to reply,

"Now you know how I felt", but couldn't.

Meanwhile, Durzas had successfully bargained for an audience with Makara. He knew what he had in mind was for the best, and was also right with the laws of his kind-but would Strema protest? He and Ebyn had discussed this option prior to finding Strema, while they had been on the trail, and the man had agreed that it was a good idea.

Durzas turned around to see Strema's reaction when Makara approached. He expected her to be angry, but she seemed only mildly interested in the proceeding discussion.

"Makara, we both know that these are your woods by right of defeat of the former alpha. However, since the stake has gone so long un-claimed, it would seem defunct."

"I would have gladly have taken possession of what is rightly mine if I had not been in fear of my skin."

"There is no governance for the neutrality of a new alpha, especially from blood revenge of the former pack."

There was a stressed silence in which Makara appeared to begin scheming anew at his defeat. But then Durzas continued,

"In light of your persistence, I have decided as alpha that one half of the territory gained by the victory over my father shall be yours. The other shall remain in custody of my pack. Is this a significant enough agreement to gain a truce?"

Makara nodded. He was old, and tired of fighting. Besides, the hunting grounds provided more than enough sustenance for his small pack of eight, well, seven now.

To seal the pact, the two approached one another and bit into one another's necks. A sort of arm-wrestling followed to decide the right of break. Durzas, being stronger and younger, succeeded in forcing his uncle onto his back so that the white wolf stood in the dominant position. If for some reason, the truce was suspected of violation on either side, it was now Durzas's right and duty to break the pact.

_The devil boiled in frustration. What had began as a perfect plan for death and the breaking of a bargain had now absolved into a family reunion! Desperate now, he woke the Guardian._


	11. Chapter 11

Strema started as a pained moaning began to wail from the end of the tunnel that her rescuers had come from.

Knowing what the noise signified, Ebyn decided it was better to leave than have to fight the spirit off. Especially since this meant he might have to reveal his true existence to more strangers.

"Let's get out of here, that doesn't sound friendly"

"_Oh no you don't…"_

_The devil risked the planes to force his plan into existence. _

The others nodded in agreement to Ebyn's suggestion. They started off at a slight jog towards the opposite end, where Makara had come in from. Brile, Mackey and Saraz disappeared in the blinding light of day; the sun was just beginning to rise.

The wailing continued, becoming louder.

"What is that?" asked Strema.

Ebyn was about to explain when his Shade suddenly appeared; his straddling of the planes allowed Makara to pass through where Ebyn saw the figure of his shade stand.

"You don't wanna go out that way, trust me"

Frustrated at his false-soul's interruption of what was going to be a timely escape, Ebyn let his guard down,

"And why not?"

But then, as Makara was crossing the threshold, the ceiling over the exit caved in.

Strema screamed in surprise and shock

"Oh no, he's okay, right?"

The Shade simply shrugged its shoulders, and looked at Ebyn with a cynical smile,

"Oh, I dunno, you tell me"

Her companions looked at the rubble hopefully, but offered no reassurance. She knew they had no stake in this, but if it weren't for her, none of them would even be there. She began to shuffle through the rocks, trying to unearth Makara.

Ebyn started to kneel to help her, even though he knew only a body was left to uncover, but then he heard on odd splitting noise.

The Shade stood over the half-spawn's shoulder, practically growling,

"There's no time for this; you need to get the girl and her brother out of here NOW!"

Ebyn turned nervously to Strema,

"There's no point-let this be his eternal tomb."

The half-demon didn't want to mention their true danger until he had to. Strema was not particularly keen on not losing her cool in situations she was completely helpless in. Her druid magics were limited, and with her concentration lowered in battle, rarely worked.

She nodded her agreement. During all this, Durzas had been trying to locate the source of the noise. He yelled over the vibrato,

"Its coming from everywhere; the walls, ceiling, and even the ground. But it is not of the earth; this is a spirit from Hell"

A scream erupted from the center of the chamber. Darkness enveloped; Ebyn could tell it was Vile Darkness.

Strema whimpered; she smelt blood and smoke and an angry tempo seemed to throb from the stone itself.

"What now?"

Ebyn heard her sniff the air; her animal instincts demanded her to have full knowledge of the situation. He realized she had morphed into full wolf, but only after smelling what was now occupying the center of the chamber.

He looked ahead and saw a Barghest materializing from a crack in the floor of the cave. The orc-like hound seemed confused, but quickly saw the hapless victims before it. The lower half of its form remained in the stone. Its powerful front legs pressed against the rocky floor and the beast strained as the lingering portion of its body was pulled from its materialization base.

_The devil knew that this tactic was cheating; and likely to fail. The true form of the Guardian was a small child, with little if any real powers. It hoped that by adding a little zest to it would even the stakes in his favor, but the half-demon's deal would save him and the girl. The Barghest was really no match for Ebyn, given his bargain with the Devil. He and the bitch would get away. But the he-wolf…_


	12. Chapter 12

The Shade knew the devil's thoughts as though they were his own; the fool must not even be trying to conceal his motives. He relayed this knowledge to Ebyn,

"You can slay this thing, no problem. And the girl-she'll get out, as long as you stay focused."

"What about Durzas?"

The two werewolves, now in canine form, looked up curiously at the man as he spoke Durzas' name. But the Barghest charged at the white wolf, and both were distracted by the ensuing battle.

The Shade looked cynically as the two wolves tore at the Hell-dog,

"He will not make it. It is the sacrifice that must be paid for your stalling."

Ebyn's face contorted in rage; suddenly, his cloak fell away, revealing his true form. Strema smiled appreciatively at her lover's bravado. She could not see him now, but the familiar sound of the rushing fabric through the air recalled visions of his former battles. The flesh of the man melded perfectly with that of the chain devil. Knowing her level of magic would be of little help anyways, she used a spell to cast day-light. To her delight, the brightness momentarily stunned the Barghest, and it backed away, whimpering. But Durzas, now bleeding from the bite, crouched in horror at the sight of the man. Ebyn knew he could take no time to explain; instead, he loosed the long metal chains from his arms, and began to expertly swing them at the Barghest. His blows landed perfectly on the beast; it was slain in a few moments. Strema sighed, something akin to a quiet howl in her current form, but her peace of mind quickly vanished at the sight of her brother. He no longer dawned the form of wolf, but instead lay pale and bloody on the ground as a fair-haired man. The Barghest had torn his throat open. He was barely still alive. She joined him in human shape, and rushed to his side. Ebyn, calming after the battle, and thinking he had altered what the Shade had said would happen, was quickly crestfallen at the sight. He didn't bother to recover his cloak as he usually did; his own form was ghastly and horrifying to himself.

Jogging over to where Strema crouched beside her bleeding brother, Ebyn knew the man would die.

"It's not that bad, right? I mean, I look a lot better than he does"

Ebyn smiled; even in his death, this werewolf was good natured. But Strema couldn't laugh with him. She had started to think that maybe things could go back to how they were in her puphood- simple, innocent. But her brother's death would only complicate things.

He turned his blond head to her then, and looked imploringly into her eyes. She couldn't stop the flow of tears as she saw the blue of his eyes over colored with the red of stress and impending death.

"Strema, I need you to tell Vitorie that he is the alpha. It will now be his responsibility to look after the pack, and end the truce with Makara if it becomes necessary. Do you understand?"

She nodded. A sob escaped her then. It rent at Ebyn's heart to see her this way. The Shade watched from the shadows; it hated being incapable of the healthier human emotions, an oddity in its character. Therefore, it was completely consumed in watching them play out. Like a child that saw something it didn't understand, the shade could only stare and wonder.

Knowing the important business of the truce was taken care of, Durzas turned to look at the atrocious man.

"So, you're not really all human, are you?"

Ebyn shook his head. But saw what he was getting at, and replied

"Neither is she."

Durzas nodded in agreement. Perhaps it was because he was dying, and with that came the instinctual sense of peace, but he somehow felt that this man-demon would always protect his sister.

"You take care of her, alright?"

"I will"

"Good; otherwise, I'd have to find a way to haunt you or something. And honestly, I was kinda looking forward to a more relaxing afterlife. You know, plenty of game, nice den, a pretty little-"

He voice cut short; he had passed on.

"Durzas? Oh no. He's gone, isn't he?"

Strema looked up at Ebyn with tear filled eyes. Real sunlight now streamed into the cave, silhouetting her form, but her eyes shown with a veracity of their own.

Ebyn nodded, and took her into his arms. The chains melted into the flesh, a painful exchange to hold her against his real skin. She wept aloud then, letting all the emotion in her fall away.

They spent the rest of the day erecting a monument in memory of Makara and Durzas. Using what was left of his magics strength, he sanctified the place. Doing this left him most weak because of the nature of his existence. The cleric from his former party had taught him a few holy spells-sanctification was one of them. But seeing the appreciation on her face made it all worth it. She took a step back, to fully admire what they had done in honor of the peace that had been obtained, then walked up to him and took his hand. Instead of putting his cloak back on, he simply picked it up, and they walked out of the cave together as the sun sank beneath the tree line.


End file.
